Looking for 1st timer recommendations

[Luv2trav]

We are looking to do our 1st ABD next summer. My husband gets a 20 year anniversary gift from his employer for a vacation of his choice. They limit cost to 15k and give him extra week off (yeah). We don't mind putting additional 10-15k towards the cost as well. Our sons will be 15 and 13 at time of travel. We want to make it special. We have never been to Europe. I am very interested in Italy and River cruises. We are very social people and like to be part of group activities. I am mostly interested in ABD because I would love for my children to make friends to make this experience more special. We are not experienced with world travel. We have only traveled in US, Canada, Caribbean and Mexico.

I would love some advice or recommendations.

 

[calypso726]

We just completed our 7th ABD and our 8th is scheduled for this December. We have had the opportunity to talk to many people about their own ABD adventures and the one ABD that most other ABD insiders have experienced and loved is the Italy trip. We have that one booked for our 9th ABD next year. Everyone raves about Italy so I guess you cant go wrong. We just did the ABD river cruise on the Danube and we loved it. We will definitely do another ABD river cruise down the line without a doubt. Between the land based ABD option and river cruise ABD option I prefer the land based one by a slight margin. There is a different feeling when we you spend a week with the same group of 30-40 people and 2 guides and get to know them as opposed to a group of 150 and 8 guides. As a rule I also prefer the land based ABD over a Disney cruise too. We love DCL and DH and I will be on Disney cruise number 16 next month. From what you describe about your preferences my suggestion would be to do the Italy ABD. I hope this helps.

 

[Luv2trav]

We just completed our 7th ABD and our 8th is scheduled for this December. We have had the opportunity to talk to many people about their own ABD adventures and the one ABD that most other ABD insiders have experienced and loved is the Italy trip. We have that one booked for our 9th ABD next year. Everyone raves about Italy so I guess you cant go wrong. We just did the ABD river cruise on the Danube and we loved it. We will definitely do another ABD river cruise down the line without a doubt. Between the land based ABD option and river cruise ABD option I prefer the land based one by a slight margin. There is a different feeling when we you spend a week with the same group of 30-40 people and 2 guides and get to know them as opposed to a group of 150 and 8 guides. As a rule I also prefer the land based ABD over a Disney cruise too. We love DCL and DH and I will be on Disney cruise number 16 next month. From what you describe about your preferences my suggestion would be to do the Italy ABD. I hope this helps.

Yes this does help immensely. I appreciate your feedback. I was leaning towards that. I also think my picky eaters will have an easier time in Italy. Lol

 

[Luv2trav]

We just completed our 7th ABD and our 8th is scheduled for this December. We have had the opportunity to talk to many people about their own ABD adventures and the one ABD that most other ABD insiders have experienced and loved is the Italy trip. We have that one booked for our 9th ABD next year. Everyone raves about Italy so I guess you cant go wrong. We just did the ABD river cruise on the Danube and we loved it. We will definitely do another ABD river cruise down the line without a doubt. Between the land based ABD option and river cruise ABD option I prefer the land based one by a slight margin. There is a different feeling when we you spend a week with the same group of 30-40 people and 2 guides and get to know them as opposed to a group of 150 and 8 guides. As a rule I also prefer the land based ABD over a Disney cruise too. We love DCL and DH and I will be on Disney cruise number 16 next month. From what you describe about your preferences my suggestion would be to do the Italy ABD. I hope this helps.

Would you suggest ABD vs DCL Mediterranean cruise??

 

[Woodview]

Buy your Passports

Next think of how you fly to Destination

From where to where ..... non stop or 1 connecting flight. ( Maybe 2 )

Think of other airlines besides USA Carriers ....... British Airways , KLM, Lufthansa , Aer Lingus . Virgin Atlantic etc

When to Travel ...... European Schools , depending on which country , start holidays from June to September ...

Major Credit Cards ( with Chip & Pin ) & ATM cards are used. ... Currency is Euros ( € )

No need for UK Sterling ( UK Pounds )

Need more help ...... just ask

 

[BluesTraveler]

Come on Rhine river cruise with us, July 29th! We also have 2 boys, and so far, including ours, there are 20 kids signed up - 12 boys, 8 girls (as of last week).

 

[Calfan]

Would you suggest ABD vs DCL Mediterranean cruise??

We haven't done the Italy ABD, but my husband and I honeymooned in Italy, and we did the DCL Med cruise with our kids in 2011. The Med cruise was one of our favorites, but if you really want to immerse yourself in Italy, I'd go with the ABD. With a cruise, you kind of get the sampler plate since you are in port for a day at most. You can do some really great excursions/activities, but you don't get an in-depth look and you rarely get to experience the cities at night (and eat great pasta for dinner).

 

[Luv2trav]

Come on Rhine river cruise with us, July 29th! We also have 2 boys, and so far, including ours, there are 20 kids signed up - 12 boys, 8 girls (as of last week).

That is so tempting. . Plus it's my sons 16th birthday on the 29th. I love all the kids that are signed up

 

[calypso726]

Would you suggest ABD vs DCL Mediterranean cruise??

We haven't done the Med yet but it is on our list of Disney cruises we'd like to do. That said, we did the 11 day Disney Frozen cruise that departed from Copenhagen and went to Norway, Iceland, Scotland and ended in Dover last summer. That cruise is our favorite DCL cruise to date and topped the Fantasy Maiden Voyage which had been our favorite beforehand. As much as I loved that cruise I still love ABD trips more. We toyed with booking the Med or the 10 day on the Fantasy for next year and actually went so far as to hold it. Once ABD released their new dates we decided to book Italy instead.

Buy your Passports

Next think of how you fly to Destination

From where to where ..... non stop or 1 connecting flight. ( Maybe 2 )

Think of other airlines besides USA Carriers ....... British Airways , KLM, Lufthansa , Aer Lingus . Virgin Atlantic etc

When to Travel ...... European Schools , depending on which country , start holidays from June to September ...

Major Credit Cards ( with Chip & Pin ) & ATM cards are used. ... Currency is Euros ( € )

No need for UK Sterling ( UK Pounds )

Need more help ...... just ask

Yup! Everything Woodview said, great advice. I will add look into Global Entry to avoid the lines in customs coming back home if your airport participates and it is great for TSA pre-check. My first ABD trip led me to discover travel hacking which is the art of collecting points and miles in order to fly using airline miles and only pay the taxes and fees for our flights. I am happy to say I have helped quite a few DISers here on the ABD board, Budget board and Cruise Line boards fly using miles and stay in hotels for free. So if you have questions about it feel free to ask.

 

[Luv2trav]

We haven't done the Italy ABD, but my husband and I honeymooned in Italy, and we did the DCL Med cruise with our kids in 2011. The Med cruise was one of our favorites, but if you really want to immerse yourself in Italy, I'd go with the ABD. With a cruise, you kind of get the sampler plate since you are in port for a day at most. You can do some really great excursions/activities, but you don't get an in-depth look and you rarely get to experience the cities at night (and eat great pasta for dinner).

I love both ideas. This is such a hard decision.

 

[Luv2trav]

We haven't done the Med yet but it is on our list of Disney cruises we'd like to do. That said, we did the 11 day Disney Frozen cruise that departed from Copenhagen and went to Norway, Iceland, Scotland and ended in Dover last summer. That cruise is our favorite DCL cruise to date and topped the Fantasy Maiden Voyage which had been our favorite beforehand. As much as I loved that cruise I still love ABD trips more. We toyed with booking the Med or the 10 day on the Fantasy for next year and actually went so far as to hold it. Once ABD released their new dates we decided to book Italy instead.




Yup! Everything Woodview said, great advice. I will add look into Global Entry to avoid the lines in customs coming back home if your airport participates and it is great for TSA pre-check. My first ABD trip led me to discover travel hacking which is the art of collecting points and miles in order to fly using airline miles and only pay the taxes and fees for our flights. I am happy to say I have helped quite a few DISers here on the ABD board, Budget board and Cruise Line boards fly using miles and stay in hotels for free. So if you have questions about it feel free to ask.

My husband is already TSA pre-check. Should the rest of us apply for this? Where would I find more info on travel hacking?

 

[Luv2trav]

Buy your Passports

Next think of how you fly to Destination

From where to where ..... non stop or 1 connecting flight. ( Maybe 2 )

Think of other airlines besides USA Carriers ....... British Airways , KLM, Lufthansa , Aer Lingus . Virgin Atlantic etc

When to Travel ...... European Schools , depending on which country , start holidays from June to September ...

Major Credit Cards ( with Chip & Pin ) & ATM cards are used. ... Currency is Euros ( € )

No need for UK Sterling ( UK Pounds )

Need more help ...... just ask

We all have passports already but that's about all we know about traveling abroad. Thank you for information.

 

[Bobo912]

My husband is already TSA pre-check. Should the rest of us apply for this? Where would I find more info on travel hacking?

You need Global Entry to expedite clearance through customs. It is a different program than TSA pre-check, although you will also get TSA pre-check as a result of being enrolled in Global Entry (that is not guaranteed, but my experience has been that we always get it). It really makes re-entering the US go much more quickly. It's $100 per person and is good from 5 years. IMO it's well worth it.

 

[Luv2trav]

You need Global Entry to expedite clearance through customs. It is a different program than TSA pre-check, although you will also get TSA pre-check as a result of being enrolled in Global Entry (that is not guaranteed, but my experience has been that we always get it). It really makes re-entering the US go much more quickly. It's $100 per person and is good from 5 years. IMO it's well worth it.

Thank you for info.

 

[calypso726]

My husband is already TSA pre-check. Should the rest of us apply for this? Where would I find more info on travel hacking?

TSA pre check will only save you time on your outbound domestic flight. I am not sure that everyone in your party would get automatically pre-checked when only one person has pre-check. Global entry will save you time coming back home if your airport participates. When I was coming back home from the river cruise last week we connected in BOS. The line to get through customs was so long they stopped letting people in the queue. They were being stopped and asked to wait until there was room to get in the queue. The only passengers allowed through were Global Entry. Judging from what I saw it would probably have been a 2 hour wait to get through that line. With Global entry there was no line, plenty of available kiosks and we were through in about a minute.

The blogs I found to be the most helpful as a beginner with travel hacking are Million Mile Secrets, Frequent Miler, Mommy Points, The Points Guy and Frugal Travel Guy. There are many but these are the ones I found helpful. DH and I always apply for the same card each to get double the bonus. Variable points that transfer to multiple airlines are best:
Chase Ultimate Rewards - the Chase Quad-fecta includes Ink Plus business, Sapphire Preferred, Freedom and Freedom Unlimited. These are the first ones to get since Chase has a new rule and will auto deny anyone who has opened up 5 cards of any bank or store in the last 24 months
Starwood Preferred Guest points - transfers to over 30 airlines
Amex Membership Rewards
Citi Thank You Points

If your home airport is a hub for a particular airline then focus on that airline and it's alliance partners as the majority of your availability for traveling with miles will likely be found there. We are in South FL and Miami is a hub for American which is a One World alliance airline. Since we started this hobby back in 2012 we have been on 10 international flights, all in first class on miles. I book one way awards so I can have more choice when it comes to the flights. Of those 10 flights 7 were booked in a One World Alliance airline either using American Airlines miles or British Airways miles. Join the dining rewards network program of your airline if it has one. It's a free easy way to pick up a few thousand miles for joining. If your preferred airline has a shopping portal do all your online shopping through the portal to get extra miles. Hope this helps.

 

[disneyphx]

What a fun decision!
It depends on what you all want, but having done the ABD Central Europe and Norway trips, I think they might suit you as they have fun/cool activities. We just got back from ABD Norway and most of the 'kids' were in the 15-18 year range. The ABD Italy/Switzerland also looks pretty active. I have not been to Italy with ABD.
Enjoy deciding!
Michele

 

[LoveMickey]

theres a lot of talked about credit cards, make sure you get one that does not have a foreign transaction fee.

We did the Viva Italia in September of 2015. It was a fabulous trip. Ours was Adults only. There's also a couple of trip reports in this forum which are very good, if you want to know what is involved in the trip.

Also, you'll want to do at least one day early. We also did on day post trip. The one day pre trip gets you used to the time difference and you are not rushed the day you get there. The same on the post stay

 

[TXTransplant]

My son (11) and I did the Italy-Amalfi Coast trip in June. There were lots of older kids on this trip as well (in fact, I think my son was the youngest, or close to it). It was full of lots of fun activities, and all of the kids had a great time. The tour starts in Sorrento and ends in Florence, and we only changed hotels once (I really liked this). We also did a few pre-days on our own in Rome, booking small group tours with Walks of Italy. You can find my trip report a few threads down. It was easy to get from Rome to Naples on the train, and ABD picked us up at the Naples train station. I had several reasons for choosing this Italy itinerary over the other one, namely, this one is significantly cheaper, and I felt VERY comfortable doing pre-days in Rome on my own, so I felt like we got the best of both trips.

 

[mare1203]

Such a hard, but fun decision!

I've been to Italy with ABD twice and would definitely recommend. The "traditional" Italy trip to Rome, Florence, and Venice is wonderful, but very art and history heavy. There are some activities, but it's much more sightseeing than the other one I did. I'd actually agree with TXTransplant above on the Italy-Amalfi Coast trip. I haven't been on it, but it looks amazing. Plus, you can always add on a couple days in Rome on your own. The ABD that goes to Rome does it very well, but not much better than you could cobble together on your own. Amalfi might be better if you like more activity. We did Italy-Switzerland last year and loved it! Northern Italy was great, but the real gem was certainly Switzerland. Much more active than our first, which we enjoyed. Italy is one of those countries I think I could return to happily again and again. Food, wine, history, art, nature, and climate are all fabulous throughout the country. I wrote trip reports about both my ABD's, which you can find in my signature, if you're interested!

Good luck!

 

[TXTransplant]

Such a hard, but fun decision!

The ABD that goes to Rome does it very well, but not much better than you could cobble together on your own. !

I couldn't agree with this more...at it's even closer than just "cobble together". I read the trip reports here very closely and looked at the itineraries...my son and I did just about everything in Rome that ABD does. And, on some things, our trip might have been a little better! Walks of Italy (WoI) does an outstanding Colosseum tour that goes to all three levels of the structure (something that, according to the recent trip reports here, ABD does not do). We also did a walking tour of Rome with WoI, and we visited the Vatican with them. We did not do a "private" tour of St. Peter's Basilica (although we could have), but we did climb up to the top of the dome. We also did a pasta making class with WoI that was one of the highlights of our trip (and very much reminiscent of the types of special experiences ABD often includes in their tours).

I put the word "private" in quotes because here is the thing...the word "private" is used VERY loosely when it comes to describing these tours (and not just by ABD). I haven't gotten a clear picture on the after hours Sistine Chapel tour that ABD includes, but I do know that they aren't the only tour group that gets "after hours" access. Just like Walks of Italy isn't the only company that gets "early entry". Which means, while the place might not be as crowded, you're not guaranteed to be standing there all by yourself. And, to be nitpicky, there is no such thing as a "private" tour of the Colosseum or the Roman Forum...there will ALWAYS be other people around you. What's "private" about it is you do get your own (very good) guide, and you may get some "special access" (like us going to the very top and the underground of the Colosseum with Walks of Italy), but you're not going to have the place all to yourself. We had a similar experience at Neuschwanstein on our Germany ABD last year. That tour was about as far from private as they come (Other non-ABD guests were put in our tour group, and we were so crowded that it really detracted from the experience. I wrote to ABD last year and complained about it).

We've done two ABDs, and to me, what ABD does best are the "off the beaten path" experiences. I think a big part of this is because the major tourist attractions of Europe have become so unbelievably crowded that you will pretty much always be experiencing them in a sea of humanity. But, ABD does a fantastic job of finding unique experiences that you might not otherwise ever hear about (some of them are even exclusive to ABD). This makes ABD trips wonderful for two reasons: 1) you get to see/experience things that you would otherwise probably never know about, and 2) it gives a nice reprieve from the hustle and bustle and crowds of the must-see attractions. All of this together makes for a very well-balanced vacation.

My point in writing all of this is to encourage you to think outside the box a little when planning your vacation. There is a lot you can do yourself on pre/post days, if you do some homework ahead of time. Will it be as convenient as ABD (with them handling all of your luggage, transportation, food, etc.)? Probably not, but if you want to maximize your vacation time and money, there are a lot of options out there to help you do that.